Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what comparative assessment he has made of the (a) cost and (b) disruption of (i) phase 2b of HS2, (ii) the revival of the Great Central Main Line and (iii) other alternatives to phase 2b of HS2 in the north of England.

The most recent cost estimate for HS2 Phase 2b, which includes the cost of disruption, is set out in the HS2 6-monthly report to Parliament: March 2021. The Government expects to set out more fully the costs of Phase 2b in the IRP and when it brings forward a hybrid Bill for the Western Leg of Phase 2b. Whist recent work has not considered the revival of the Great Central Main Line as an alternative to HS2 Phase 2b, we have assessed a range of alternatives to the scheme throughout its development, with the most recent assessment by Atkins published in 2016. The government intends to update the strategic alternatives to phase 2b when it brings forward a hybrid Bill for the Western Leg of Phase 2b.